Employment in the U.S. increased by more than anticipated in the month of January, according to a report released by the Labor Department on Friday.
The Labor Department said non-farm payroll employment jumped by 227,000 jobs in January after climbing by a revised 157,000 jobs in December.
Economists had expected an increase of about 175,000 jobs compared to the addition of 156,000 jobs originally reported for the previous month.
The report showed significant job growth in the retail sector, which added 45,900 jobs in January following an increase of 33,500 jobs in December.
Employment in the construction sector also saw a notable increase of 36,000 jobs, while strong job growth was also seen in the financial activities and leisure and hospitality sectors.
Despite the stronger than expected job growth, the unemployment rate inched up to 4.8 percent in January from 4.7 percent in December. The rate had been expected to remain unchanged.
The unemployment rate edged higher for the second straight month after falling to a nine-year low of 4.6 percent in November.
The uptick in the unemployment rate came as the labor force increased by 76,000 people, while the household survey of employment showed a drop of 30,000.
Meanwhile, the Labor Department said the annual rate of average hourly employee earnings growth slowed to 2.5 percent in January from 2.8 percent in December.
Andrew Hunter, U.S. Economist at Capital Economics, said, "The 227,000 rise in non-farm payrolls in January suggests that the labor market started the year on a reasonably solid footing."
"However, the drop back in annual wage growth is another reason to think the Fed will hold off raising interest rates until June," he added.
The Federal Reserve is scheduled to hold its next monetary policy meeting in mid-March followed by another meeting in May.
by RTT Staff Writer
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